4th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today begins a nationwide observance of Catholic Schools Week, recognizing Catholic Schools as communities of faith, knowledge, and service. Within our own parish, Our Lady of Fatima School has been fulfilling this role for 71 years. Tens of thousands of students have benefited from the education and spiritual formation they received at Our Lady of Fatima School over the years, and today’s students continue to do so. The coronavirus pandemic has presented special challenges. We have had in-class learning since the beginning of the school year except for a few weeks when there was a surge of COVID cases during the holidays. Even when we do have in-class learning, parents still have the option to have their children learn remotely. In addition to the wearing of masks and practicing social distancing in the layout of our classrooms, each classroom has a disinfecting station available, and the school is cleaned and disinfected throughout the day, with special attention paid to what are called “high-touch” areas such as doorknobs, computer keyboards, and such.

The class sizes at Our Lady of Fatima School are small enough to ensure that students receive individualized attention, and students are challenged to encourage them to reach their maximum potential. Our parish school is recognized for its academic excellence and this is demonstrated by how well our students score on national tests. In addition to the basic core curriculum, classes are offered in a variety of subject areas including art, music and Spanish. There are also other extracurricular activities.

Encouraging all people to model their lives on that of Jesus, Pope Francis has said, “The life of Jesus is a life for others. It is a life of service.” There are several service projects undertaken by the students at Our Lady of Fatima each year. They include such activities as raising money for the relief of victims of natural disasters, donating time at the Roadrunner Food Bank, or bringing canned goods to the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry to help feed the hungry in our community.

Every service project encourages our students to understand that what we do for others in need, we do for Christ.

Finally, and most importantly, faith is an integral component of our school experience. Each day begins and ends with prayer. Matters of our Catholic faith are freely discussed, without the prohibitions imposed on public school teachers and students. Religion class is taught daily and our 3rd grade students are prepared to receive the Sacraments of First Reconciliation (Confession) and First Holy Communion. Our weekly School Mass takes place at 8:15 am on Wednesdays, and students normally serve as lectors, cantors, and altar servers, as well as bringing up the bread and wine at the Offertory. These opportunities have been temporarily discontinued because of the pandemic, but will be restored once it is safe to do so. There are also opportunities for Eucharistic Adoration, praying the Rosary, Stations of the Cross during Lent, and many other faith-related activities.

Whether it is in the area of faith, knowledge, or service, Our Lady of Fatima School is truly a treasure within our parish. I invite all parents and grandparents of our parish community to seriously consider Our Lady of Fatima School for your children or grandchildren. It is one of the greatest gifts you can give them. For parishioners who no longer have children or grandchildren of school age in the home, please consider sponsoring a student at our school by contributing to our financial aid fund.

To visit our school facilities and staff, please call our principal, Ms. Melinda Mader, at 255-6391 to arrange a personalized visit.

Visit Our Lady of Fatima School Website